Omicron COVID-19 variant found in 11 states as Delta variant instances are rising

as a minimum 32 instances of the Omicron COVID-19 variant had been reported across 12 states — 7 instances in California, 1 in New Jersey in a Georgia resident, 1 in Utah, 2 in Colorado, 1 in Missouri, 1 in Pennsylvania, 3 in Maryland, 6 in Nebraska, 1 in Hawaii, eight in long island, 1 in Minnesota and 1 in Massachusetts.

The largest query is whether latest, available vaccines will prevent severe circumstances spread through the Omicron variant.

so far, the handful of widespread situations within the U.S. were said by means of fitness officials as mild and in vaccinated individuals. but with so few instances, there's not sufficient facts yet on what to predict from Omicron.

it be still instances from the Delta variant which have officials' attention, Tom Hanson reviews for "CBS Saturday Morning."

COVID cases driven by means of the Delta variant are rising, averaging 96,000 new situations a day and hitting tough within the upper Midwest to New England. New Hampshire led the nation in new situations per capita remaining week

"99.9% of circumstances in the nation at the moment are from the Delta variant," stated Dr. Rochelle Walensky, director of the facilities for disorder handle and Prevention.

When it involves the Omicron variant, fitness officials are counseling calm.

"we're equipped and ready to battle the Omicron variant head on," Walensky referred to.

"there may be each reason to consider that in case you get vaccinated and boosted, that you'd have at the least some degree of move-protection, very doubtless in opposition t extreme sickness, even towards the Omicron variant," talked about Dr. Anthony Fauci, director of the country wide Institute of allergic reaction and Infectious illnesses and chief medical marketing consultant to the president.

but Omicron spreads twice as speedy because the Delta variant, and this week, gentle instances of the pressure, first recognized in South Africa, popped up in diverse states including Maryland, where Governor Larry Hogan had just announced an aggressive partnership to find COVID instances fast.

"The state entered into agreements with both Johns Hopkins and the institution of Maryland to more than double our already aggressive true-time variant surveillance," he spoke of this week.

foreign travelers will be required to take a COVID test sooner or later earlier than boarding a flight to the U.S. from a country the place Omicron has been detected. once they arrive, many airports have on-website testing.

more than two dozens international locations have identified situations with the Omicron strain.

"Now is not the time to chill out," referred to Baltimore metropolis fitness Commissioner Dr. Letitia Dzirasa. "We're seeing this variant of difficulty and how to address editions is to slow COVID transmission, and we try this through vaccination, we try this via protecting."

Alexander Tin contributed reporting to this article.

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